Kendall: I'm fascinated by your principle of democracy, that if 75% of the population dont do something, the other 25% should be banned from doing it. Would this apply to other minority activities, like guitar-playing, keeping hens, jogging, writing down the numbers on the front of locomotives, writng to Mudcat?

That argument misses the point. Pretty much completely.

I consider myself a libertarian (lower case), but smoking in public is not a personal liberty issue.

I will defend, with enthusiasm, the right of any adult to smoke at any time, provided that:

1) It is done where no one else has to breath the second-hand smoke - including the smoker's own children, living in his/her residence, and

2) Some arrangement is made for the burden of the additional health care costs to be imposed on the smoking public rather than the general public - like dumping all of the tobacco taxes into the health care system.

But smoking in an enclosed public space is a physical attack on anyone else present, pure and simple. It would be wrong - it was wrong - even when the majority of people smoked. The difference now is, the non-smokers have the power to protect themselves.

Peter.